--Jake--
It seemed like the shortest sleep I'd ever had: the kind of sleep where you swore you just closed your eyes five minutes ago and the only way five hours had passed was because the world conspired against you and turned a little faster while you were out. The alarm was loud and annoying, but for the best (otherwise I never would have heard it). Out of habit, I swung my arm toward the right side of my bed, where I keep my alarm clock, only to realize, stupidly, that the blaring sound was coming from my left.
Shit. I was still trapped in Devlin's body. This wasn't my room or my alarm. My immediate reaction was disappointment. So much for an easy fix. I opened my eyes to find and shut off Devlin's alarm.
Moments passed as I lay staring at the unfamiliar ceiling. I was trapped. I had no clue what I was going to do, or how I was going to survive another day putting up with his stuffy family. But it was Monday, so there was school, which was an even bigger problem. Devlin couldn't be more different from me. I wouldn't be able to keep up in his advanced classes. I wouldn't be able to relate to his friends in the least. I had no idea who Devlin was: his personal life was a total mystery to me. What if he has some secret boyfriend? I thought. I'm going to freak if he does...shit, shit, shit. How could I be expected to deal with all this? What had I done to earn such a horrible fate? Why me?
A ringing from across the room pulled me out of the chaos going on in my head. Devlin's phone was going off, buzzing angrily on his bureau where I had left the thing last night. I jumped out of bed to answer it. My name was on the screen so I hit the button to answer it.
"Yeah?"
"Jake," Devlin breathed into the phone. Hearing my own voice on the other line would definitely take some serious getting used to.
"Devlin, you fucking liar." I tried not to be too pissed with the kid, but I felt really defeated, upset that what he assured me of hadn't happened.
"Jake, I'm really, really sorry. I'll admit I have no idea what's going on here." He paused, then sighed.
"Yeah, tell me about it... Okay, well if this isn't going to sort itself out anytime soon, we need a game plan, now." I wanted this problem solved, of course, but if I was stuck in Devlin's body I had to figure out how I was going to make it through the day. "I need to know how to survive a day in the life of Devlin Patterson. Honestly, I have no clue who your friends are, what classes you're in, what you do in your spare time... Look, can we meet at Hannah's Café before school starts. We really need to compare notes and make this work."
"Um sure...do you have a car I can drive? I know you can use mine. My parents permit me to drive to school every day. Mine's the grey Bonneville, third spot in the garage. You'll find my keys hanging on a hook marked with my name in the kitchen."
"Okay, yeah. You'll have to ask my mom if you can take her VW, but she works from home and lets me take it pretty often, it shouldn't be a big deal. Call me if she gives you any trouble, and don't take too long. Meet me at Hannah's in 15, okay dude?" I wasn't too worried about him getting the car. I drive it to school four out of five days a week.
"Alright, I'll see you there then. Make sure you bring all the books, binders, and notebooks you can find in my room," Devlin said, sounding a bit too cheery for my liking.
"Sure thing, grab my stuff too."
"Okay then, no problem," he responded. I almost hung up then, but a thought hit me. "Wait, Devlin?"
"Yes Jake?"
"Try not to wear anything too gay."
"Haha, no worries, you don't even have a perceivable wardrobe. It's work out gear all day every day from what I can gather."
